July reading wrap up

I had a pretty great reading month, I didn’t 100% stick to my tbr, I guess my mood reader ways can’t be tamed, but for the most part I read some great books. I haven’t picked up a book in the last week. I’m not sure why. Emotionally it has been a big couple of months and I think I’m burnt out.

I watched a Jolt, on Amazon. Kate Beckinsale is such a badass babe. It wasn’t the best movie but I didn’t have to think or feel for 90 minutes so that was nice. I also watched a few episodes of New Girl. I love it but only watch 2-3 episodes every few months, so it’s going to take me forever to get through. (I’m still on season 1). I also started The Good Doctor. It will also become a show I only watch every now and then, so I’ll never get through it. And last night I decided to introduce the 16yr old to Underworld as she hadn’t seen it yet and as expected she bloody loved it and is planning on watching the rest of them as soon as possible.

June wrap up part 2

I’m not sure why this has been such a full on reading month but I have smashed my yearly reading target. The part one of my wrap up can be found HERE. I actually completed my tbr which is astounding as it’s not something I do often. I’ve already talked about all the Tate James I’ve read this month as well, so I won’t repeat those, but if you missed it, you can find those HERE. I even managed to shove a fantasy or two into my schedule. They were rereads and I loved them more the second time around.

I don’t normally put star ratings on my blog, but because I’m not actually talking about any of the books, I figured this would be an easy way to give you an idea on what I thought of them.

Author spotlight – Tate James

Sometimes you see an authors name get thrown around and you wonder, is the hype warranted. Are they really that good at what they do?

As I said a few weeks ago, I’ve was planning on reading pretty much all romance this month. I had a heap of authors I wanted to try and I managed to snag free kindle unlimited, so I’ve had plenty to choose from. Tate James is a name I’ve been hearing about on instagram for months and when I finally joined the TikTok ranks the romance readers seemed to love her. I selected 6 or so authors and was only going to read one book from each author. 

WWW Wednesday

Today I have a super simple post to let the world know what I’m reading. Hosted by Taking on a World of Words, you answer 3 questions and hey presto, you are all done.

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

 

Guess who has a three month trial of kindle unlimited? ME, ME, ME!! I’m having fun with it.

Currently reading –

I’ve been embracing the romance genre this month, but was missing fantasy, so I thought I would combine the two and give A Deal with the Elf King a go after seeing rave reviews and signing up to kindle unlimited. I’m halfway through as I write this and I haven’t decided if I’m going to finish it. I’m rather bored. 

Recently Finished –

I completed my reread of Never Die and Pawns Gambit by Rob J. Hayes and they were both better the second time around. I have reviews up for them here and here, if you want to check those out. If you haven’t read anything by Hayes before and are not sure where to start, I would definitely suggest this series. The characters are delightful and surprising. He writes brilliant female characters and they are never included just to move the story along. They are the story. The mythology is intriguing and well written.

 

Reading Next –

Liar by Tate James is the next book on my tbr. It’s book 2 in the Madison Kate series. It turns out I’m quite the fan of the reverse harem sub genre.

Have you read any of these? What are you reading at the moment?

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

I enjoyed Trail of lightning and when I saw all the hype around Black Sun I purposely stayed away from reviews to avoid spoiling it for myself. I went in blind so to speak.

BEST DESCISION EVER

What an absolute delight. Reading Black Sun is an absolute experience. It has popped straight to the list of books I wish I could read again for the very first time.

The characters, the lore, the way the multiple pov’s weave in around each other. Each and every aspect of Black Sun is a masterclass on how to do epic fantasy.

Synopsis –

A god will return
When the earth and sky converge
Under the black sun

Spotlight – Shards of Earth by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Shards of Earth by Adrian Tchaikovsky is quite possibly the most loved book the The Write Reads team has had on a book tour. I’ve not seen one negative comment yet.

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Goodreads  –  Amazon

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Blurb

This high-stakes space-based adventure will be perfect for those who loved Children of Time, also by Adrian Tchaikovsky.

The war is over. Its heroes forgotten. Until one chance discovery . . .

Idris has neither aged nor slept since they remade his mind in the war. And one of humanity’s heroes now scrapes by on a freelance salvage vessel, to avoid the attention of greater powers.

Eighty years ago, Earth was destroyed by an alien enemy. Many escaped, but millions more died. So mankind created enhanced humans ¬such as Idris – who could communicate mind-to-mind with our aggressors. Then these ‘Architects’ simply disappeared and Idris and his kind became obsolete.

Now, Idris and his crew have something strange, abandoned in space. It’s clearly the work of the Architects – but are they really returning? And if so, why? Hunted by gangsters, cults and governments, Idris and his crew race across the galaxy as they search for answers. For they now possess something of incalculable value, and many would kill to obtain it.

Praise for Adrian Tchaikovsky:

‘Brilliant science fiction’ – James McAvoy on Children of Time

‘Full of sparkling, speculative invention’ – Stephen Baxter on The Doors of Eden

Shards of Earth is the first thrilling instalment in the Final Architecture trilogy – by the Arthur C. Clarke award-winning novelist Adrian Tchaikovsky.

About the author

Adrian Tchaikovsky is the author of the acclaimed Shadows of the Apt fantasy series, from the first volume, Empire In Black and Gold in 2008 to the final book, Seal of the Worm, in 2014, with a new series and a standalone science fiction novel scheduled for 2015. He has been nominated for the David Gemmell Legend Award and a British Fantasy Society Award. In civilian life he is a lawyer, gamer and amateur entomologist.

Author Interview with Khaiah Thomson

I’m incredibly lucky to have Khaiah Thomson, author of Welcome to Blackwood, on the blog today. 

She writes paranormal stories, with a determined, feisty, female lead in the most lush setting you could hope to live. Make sure you check out the giveaway I’m running if you want to win your very own copy of Welcome to Blackwood, links will be at the end. You can see my review HERE.

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Hi Khaiah, thank you so much for taking the time to join me on the blog. Congratulations on the release of Welcome to Blackwood. I had an absolute blast reading it.

Welcome to Blackwood by Khaiah Thomson

A chance encounter at the hairdresser brought this book to my attention and I’m very glad it happened. So thank you to my hairdresser for fitting me in and introducing me to the author in the basin next to me.

Welcome to Blackwood is Khaiah Thomson’s debut novel and she has smashed it out of the park with an engaging, well written story.

It is set in the lush, secretive town of Blackwood. The descriptions are fantastic and I want to live there. Not even for all the supernatural shenanigans, but for the absolutely beautiful setting. It has the forest, beach and small town vibes. It sounds like heaven.

Stacking The Shelves

A weekly post where I can brag about my new books? Yes please. Granted I definitely won’t have something to post every week, I’ll just do it as required. I will be including everything from my purchases, to NetGalley, gifts and books from authors. For more information head over to Tynga’s reviews.

I finished The Night Prince series. And if you have read any of my stacking the shelves updates you would know I was on a buying ban and couldn’t buy any new physical books until I had finished the series. I was so excited, I knew which book or five I wanted. There have been some amazing new releases out already this year, I wanted them all. I wanted all the pretty new books for my shelves. So you can imagine my utter despair when I discovered that I couldn’t get any of the books I wanted in paperback. I’m a tight ass, I don’t pay hardback price. DEVASTATED. First world problems I know. I decided to get a different book (great decision) and get the kindle version (I’ll get it in paperback later), and that led me to the other horror book I found.

Ebooks:

The Gulp by Alan Baxter – I may have a slight obsession with Alan Baxter’s books. This one was an absolute winner and my review can be found HERE.

We Are Wolves: A Horror Anthology by some incredibly talented authors and edited by Gemma Amor, Laurel Hightower and Cynthia Paleyo – This is one that I wasn’t searching for, it found me and boy am I glad. Feminist dark fantasy and horror. From the forward to the very last page, I was completely enamoured.

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse – I’ve had my eye on this since it was first released. I don’t know what the deal is at the moment, but I couldn’t get this in paperback either.

From blood and Ash by Jennifer L Armentrout – There is so much hype around this one. I’m hoping for dark and sexy fantasy.

That’s it from me this week. Have you read any of these? Do you have a favourite?

WWW Wednesday

Today I have a super simple post to let the world know what I’m reading. Hosted by Taking on a World of Words, you answer 3 questions and hey presto, you are all done.

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently reading –

We Are Wolves: A Horror Anthology – Including authors like Gemma Amor, Jessica Guess, Sadie Hartmann and many more, this book isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s powerful, emotional, empowering and dark.